ROUND 5 MATCHES (RESCHEDULED DUE TO POOL ISSUES 10-3-26)

Women's A Grade 

The Essendon girls had a night off with a scheduled bye this week, but have finished the competititon in second place, so will play off in the Gold Medal game next week.

Women's B Grade : EssRed - Report by Lisa Murray-Segal

Unfortunately we had only 5 of our 11 players available this week, and we were unable to secure help from the A grade ladies, so had to call in a forfeit. A blessing for some, with the game being played out at Camberwell Grammer... it saved some fuel!

Essendon Red were defeated by Footscray : 0 - 8 (Forfeit)

Women's B Grade : EssBlack - Report by Amber Mink

 This week we travelled all the way to Camberwell to catch up on our missed game from round 5 against the Northcote Krakens. We had high hopes for today as our junior girls had defeated the Krakens on Sunday, and the majority of the team was the same. We had Claudia on board with us as well today, as the A grade team had a bye. We were not off to a great start with no one managing to put us on the score board although Amber won us the swim up, the Krakens slotting in 4 for the quarter. We stepped it up a little bit in the next with another swim up won and Sandra and Claudia getting a goal each. Sandra having some very good saves as well in goals and the half finished at 2-2. The third quarter was not the best for us, with only 1 smashing goal from Amrit and 3 from Northcote. We once again gave it our all in the final quarter, scoring 3 goals and pushing to keep things tight but unfortunately the Krakens also managed to slot 3. We finished the game at 6-12, but we fought hard all night despite only having one on the bench, and missing heaps of our shots which showed we could match them if only they were directed a bit better (Essendon trademark?).

We did however reward ourselves with heaps of lollies afterwards, as always 😋. Special thanks to Claudia for giving up her free night and dad Andrew for table duty.

Essendon Black were defeated by Northcote : 6 - 12 

Goals : Claudia 2, Sandra 1, Amrit 1, Madeleine 1, Sophie 1

ROUND 7 MATCHES - FINALS & PLAYOFFS

Men's C Grade - BRONZE MEDAL GAME 🥉

Report by Marcus Jones

The last game of the Summer Splash for the Essendon Cs and it was a cold and wet night with lightning in the air…this caused our game to be delayed and reduced to 5min quarters. We almost had a full team tonight with 3 on the bench which is unheard of this season with the only out being Ambrose recovering from a dislocated shoulder – a result of carrying the Essendon Cs all year. The game itself was fun as we played the same team last week with largely the same result. The major highlights were: The SILVER FOX is BACKKKKKK – Lee's radar was on with great goal shooting; Millsy backhanders will be recorded as miracles in the 3rd Testament; Matt Ls goalkeeping is Water Polo’s best kept secret. Thanks guys for a great season and see you all for the Summer comp which is played in Winter.

Essendon defeated Melbourne Surge Obsidiam : 10 - 1   Goals : TBC

Below : Our men's C Grade side after taking out the Bronze (photo courtesy of Hayden Woods)

Men's D Grade - PLAYOFF - 5th Vs 6th

Report (Apocalypse Edition) by Sam Brown

The thunderstorm that rolled in before our final game of the Summer Splash wasn’t just weather — it was a full-blown warning from the gods. Lightning cracking, arctic winds cutting through… this wasn’t a game night, this was a battle omen. The problem was… we didn’t know who it was for. So naturally, we did what any questionable decision-makers would do - jumped in anyway and figured we’d sort it out mid-game (like absolute professionals). Early on, it was a bit of organised chaos. Communication? Patchy. Structure? Optional. But somehow, through the madness, BWee slots one early — and suddenly it clicks. The gods weren’t against us. But they definitely weren’t tipping us either.  Next thing you know, it’s 1-8 Surge are flying.…then the actual lightning said “not so fast”.

We come back in - reset, reloaded, slightly too relaxed — for two short, brutal 5-minute quarters. And that’s when reality hits. The legs go. The spark fades. The comeback never really ignites. Great work from Matty who almost got us several goals and a big shout out to Andrew who was a stellar goalie all Splash! All goals to the veterans — the old warhorses putting in the work while the young guns… well, almost.

Essendon were defeated by Melbourne Surge Black : 3 - 8  Goals : Bryan 1, Hayden 1, Rohan 1

12&U Mixed - Report by Sheridan Mom

A tough but encouraging game for the Under 12s, going down 10–5 to a very well-drilled Richmond team. The difference was their structure, Richmond kids always seemed to know where to go and what to do, moving the ball with purpose and making the most of their chances. That said, our team matched them early, and at half time were only down by a goal after a strong, determined first half. There were some great attacking moments and five well earned goals, while defensively the effort never dropped. A valuable learning game against quality opposition, with plenty of positives to take away.

Essendon/DVE Aquatic were defeated by the Richmond Tigers : 5 - 10  Goals : Xavier 4, Louis 1

14&U Boys 

Footscray/Essendon/Monash/Northcote drew with the Geelong Marlins : 5 - 5 Goals : James 2, Lucas 2

14&U Girls

DVE Aquatic(Essendon) were defeated by the Richmond Tigers : 5 - 13  Goals : TBC

Youth Boys (Jack)

DVE Aquatic(Essendon) drew with Richmond Black : 4 - 4 Goals : Daniel 2, Luca 1, Alexander 1

Youth Boys (Timo)

Northcote(Essendon) defeated the Richmond Tigers : 0 - 8 (forfeit)

Youth Girls - Report by Kate Simnett

GAME 1 : Finally! A win! Our first for the season! A chaotic and hard fought first and second quarter had the two teams even to begin with. A birthday goal from Alice in the second quater was a lovely touch. Then goals from Maddie and Amber in the third quarter put us in the lead. The final quarter was all about defending and Ari, Alice and Lola were on the case to see us over the line!

Essendon/Geelong defeated Northcote : 4 - 3 Goals : Madeleine 2, Amber 1, Alice 1

GAME 2 : Bouyed by our win, we went into our second game with some confidence. However, a well-drilled MC side had a plan - and they stuck to it.  We were down 0 - 3 in the first quarter but by half time it was looking more promising at 2 to 4 with a superb goal from Maddie, and another from Kate. We looked a bit gassed in the second half and one more from Kate wasn’t enough to stop them. 

Essendon/Geelong were defeated by MelbColl/DVE Aquatic : 3 - 8 Goals : Kate 2, Madeleine 1

Excitingly, the earlier victory meant the girls are now playing finals! We are staring down the barrel of a 1 v 4 semi final against a strong top-age Richmond side this Sunday... but will give it our best!

Junior Men - Report by Felix Neal

The game started off well with us leading by a goal heading into the first quarter, 2-1. They managed to equalise just before the half to sit at 2-2. The second half was well fought out by the team. However MC managed to get ahead with multiple quick goals catching us by surprise. We ended up losing the game but it was a strong effort by the team.

DVE Aquatic(Essendon) were defeated by MC Blue : 4 - 7 Goals : Jeremy 2, Liam 2